"How do I know what to focus on?"
If you're stuck between creative projects...
Here’s a way to think about it.
When you have a whole load of creative projects to work on, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed.
There’s lots of things you could be doing… So how do you know where to start?
This is something a lot of creatives struggle with. Having lots of ideas and not knowing which ones to pursue.
Here’s one way I like to think of it, and how I’d advise my clients to think about it too:
First… whatever you do, is going to benefit the rest of what you do.
Whatever you spend your time on now, will inform and help all your work going forward. It all counts.
I know it sounds easier in theory than practice… but trust me on this: You don’t need to be worried about picking the ‘wrong thing.’
We can get so caught up in trying to avoid the wrong thing, that we end up picking nothing. And the worst thing we can do is pick nothing. Everything else is a better option than that.
So often, there’s not just one ‘right’ choice. There are lots of very good choices — that will all help us in some way.
So pick one.
“All the options are great. I cannot lose.”
If you’re starting out on your creative journey, you have no major body of work to build on — so you have very little to inform you of what direction you’re ‘supposed' to be heading.
Instead of this feeling like a burden, what if it could feel like a freedom? What if you decided you literally cannot get it wrong? All the options are great.
Pick one. And know that it is all part of your work going forward. This is all contributing to your creative journey — and this is one piece, one step, of many.
This principle still holds true for people who are further along their creative journey. Your options might be more informed by your body of work, but there will still be likely lots of, or at least a few, different things you’d like to explore.
This time is not wasted either — because it all informs your journey. It all tells you where to go next.
However, we obviously cannot do all the things at once.
So, you might pick a project that brings in income. Or you pick a project that gives you a specific win you are looking for (like submitting your work to a publication.) You might choose something that allows you to explore a different medium... It’s up to you. You get to decide.
You can always go back and pick something else. You can always change your mind.
So often we worry about wasting time.
We worry we’ll pour hours into a project that doesn’t go anywhere, or doesn’t produce the result we want.
But that doesn’t mean the project — or time — was wasted.
If it informs you, if you learn something from it, you know what to do (or not do) for next time. You build upon your result.
We think this is a slower way of working. But it isn’t.
Because actually, we are making more progress. We're learning faster, and getting there faster, than if we stopped working and spent all our time worrying about the ‘best’ option to pick.
The biggest waste of time is worrying about wasting time, and not doing anything as a result.
Anything else is a better option.
I know, because this was me. For a long time.
And that’s not to shame anyone in this situation. I personally know how hard it is to trust ourselves and the process.
But the quickest way to trust is to start trusting. To find the place that feels accessible to us now, and start from there. Grow from here. And keep growing.
So, if you’re feeling stuck, I invite you to stop trying to anticipate all the options. Stop looking ahead to all the possible ways you could influence the outcome… and start with here. Start with what you know. Start, here. 🌿